The tribe has spoken, and America has an official winner of Survivor 50.
Warning: Spoilers below for the finale of Survivor 50.
After weeks of shocking tribal councils, immunity idols and game play, host Jeff Probst announced the Sole Survivor during the Wednesday, May 20, live finale.
Following an intense Q&A with the finalists, the jury cast their votes and declared Aubry Bracco was the winner of season 50 and deserving of $2 million (and a brand-new Toyota Land Cruiser). Jonathan Young was the runner-up while Joe Hunter made the finals but received zero jury votes.
“I have come in second place, gone deep scrapping, flopped really hard with an idol in my pocket,” Aubry shared after her win. “But I came back and I was more intuitive. I trusted myself. I moved differently and most importantly, I learned from the incredible players and winners before me.
The three-hour event kicked off with Rizo Velovic, Tiffany Ervin, Jonathan, Joe, Aubry making it to the final 5. When it was time for the jury to vote, however, only three contestants remained.
Eliminated contestants Rizo and Tiffany joined Dee Valladares, Chrissy Hofbeck, Benjamin “Coach” Wade, Christian Hubicki, Stephenie LaGrossa Kendrick, Emily Flippen, Ozzy Lusth and Rick Devens as the jury members who had the responsibility of picking a winner for the season.
Survivor kicked off its 50th season in February with legendary players from the past returning to battle it out once again for the title of Sole Survivor.
Before the premiere, many contestants spoke exclusively to Us Weekly about how they prepared for another chance at the iconic game.
“I’d say I’ve been preparing since the Edge of Extinction ended. I’ve done a lot of work on myself,” Aubrey told Us. “I’ve had a baby. My perspective on life … I’m a lot more grounded. I’ve done a lot of self reflection. I’ve been working out, meditating, listening to a hell of a lot of podcasts about all these characters. I’ve been studying. I’ve been [doing] my Survivor homework. It took a little break, but I caught up and I’m ready to go.”
Jonathan also admitted to doing his homework before competing against some of the best players to ever appear on Survivor.
“I’ve studied the players. I know what they’ve done, why they’ve done it, at least as much as I can,” he said. “There’s Rick Devens, Charlie [Davis] and Dee, all three of them are here, and all three of them are big targets.”
While season 51 of Survivor is coming soon to CBS, some fans may wonder just how long Jeff can host the beloved reality show.
When speaking to Us, the Emmy winner said he hopes the show can last forever — with or without him leading the tribal councils.
“My blood is in this show, right? I literally bled for this show for nearly three decades,” Jeff shared. “But 100 percent, this is not me saying something politically correct. The show should last forever, because the format is just an incredible format.”
